Saturday, September 11, 2010
Group ‘D’ the Group of death
By STEPHON NICHOLAS Saturday, September 11 2010
GROUP ‘D’ of the 2010 FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup was blown wide open on Thursday with Ireland beating Canada 1-0 and the exciting Ghanians upsetting favourites Brazil also 1-0 in a double-header at the Larry Gomes Stadium, Malabar.
Each team now has three points from two games with Ghana to play Ireland in their final match and Brazil tackling Canada tomorrow.
Group ‘D’ has been the most unpredictable of the World Cup with defence being the main priority for Ireland and Canada. In contrast, Brazil and Ghana have been the most adventurous but neither team has been able to separate themselves from the group.
And with just one match remaining for each team, it would not be a surprise to see Ireland and Canada progress to the quarter-final at the expense of their more illustrious rivals.
For all their attacking style and flair, Ghana has scored just one goal in the competition which many would consider lucky. A goalkeeping blunder from Brazilian Daniele allowed Ghana forward Alice Danso to open her and her team’s account in the World Cup with a simple tap-in.
The Ghanaians have been the most creative team in the group but have been wasteful in front of goal. In their final match, however, the “Black Maidens” need to put away their chances against Ireland who are not to be taken lightly. The Irish, similar to Canada, pride themselves in being strong in defence and deadly from set plays. An opponent like that seems to be the Achilles heel to Ghana who prefer a team which attacks more thus leaving spaces at the back for them to exploit. Ghana is one of the youngest teams in the competition with three 13 year olds in their squad and two in the starting lineup. But they would have to show a bit of experience to get past the Irish who showed great determination and grit to defeat Canada and stay alive in the competition.
The Samba Girls of Brazil have flattered to deceive as well, defeating underdogs Ireland just 2-1 in their opening encounter before falling to Ghana. Brazil captain Thais is certainly one of the most skillful players on the competition, dribbling past players at will but needs to exert her influence on the team more. For all their prestige, having scored a whopping 41 goals to win the South American Championship, the Brazilians have yet to fire on TT soil.
The team, coached by Edvaldo Erlacher, has been more keen to pass the ball around and maintain possession than attack. They would do well to change their tactics as it was only in the second half against Ghana when they were in desperate search of a goal that they looked the most dangerous.
Group ‘D’ has been the most unpredictable of the World Cup with defence being the main priority for Ireland and Canada. In contrast, Brazil and Ghana have been the most adventurous but neither team has been able to separate themselves from the group.
And with just one match remaining for each team, it would not be a surprise to see Ireland and Canada progress to the quarter-final at the expense of their more illustrious rivals.
For all their attacking style and flair, Ghana has scored just one goal in the competition which many would consider lucky. A goalkeeping blunder from Brazilian Daniele allowed Ghana forward Alice Danso to open her and her team’s account in the World Cup with a simple tap-in.
The Ghanaians have been the most creative team in the group but have been wasteful in front of goal. In their final match, however, the “Black Maidens” need to put away their chances against Ireland who are not to be taken lightly. The Irish, similar to Canada, pride themselves in being strong in defence and deadly from set plays. An opponent like that seems to be the Achilles heel to Ghana who prefer a team which attacks more thus leaving spaces at the back for them to exploit. Ghana is one of the youngest teams in the competition with three 13 year olds in their squad and two in the starting lineup. But they would have to show a bit of experience to get past the Irish who showed great determination and grit to defeat Canada and stay alive in the competition.
The Samba Girls of Brazil have flattered to deceive as well, defeating underdogs Ireland just 2-1 in their opening encounter before falling to Ghana. Brazil captain Thais is certainly one of the most skillful players on the competition, dribbling past players at will but needs to exert her influence on the team more. For all their prestige, having scored a whopping 41 goals to win the South American Championship, the Brazilians have yet to fire on TT soil.
The team, coached by Edvaldo Erlacher, has been more keen to pass the ball around and maintain possession than attack. They would do well to change their tactics as it was only in the second half against Ghana when they were in desperate search of a goal that they looked the most dangerous.
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